Cognitive Behavioural Therapy For Dummies

I've had the CHT for Dummies book for several years, and it’s been an invaluable resource. It’s a great introduction to CBT, breaking down the basics in a way that’s easy to understand and apply. The layout and wording are especially user-friendly, making it approachable even for beginners. I’ve found myself coming back to it often, using the advice, case studies, and worksheets to reinforce what I’ve learned in my own therapy. What I appreciate most is how practical and accessible the book is. It’s not just a guide for personal use—I’ve also used it to help a friend who’s going through therapy. The themes are clearly presented, and the exercises are straightforward, making it an excellent tool for anyone looking to better understand and manage their emotions. The exercises it provides are great starting points for anyone who’s interested and looking at the price, the value you’re getting from this book is tremendous. It’s honestly helped me tackle my triggers and also help close friends going through rough times. I will say, I do think the author’s views are a little outdated or to personal. They can be suggestive to what is right and wrong and I don’t personally believe that’s the right way of providing a neutral, supportive environment for anyone who may have these “sins”.

I had been struggling for sometime with anxiety but had no idea where to turn. I came across CBT in a news article and located this book on Amazon based on average customer review. I love this book as it truly covers the topic of CBT very comprehensively so that even a dummy like me can understand. A great mix of theory, practical advice, case studies and worksheets to get you back on track!

I purchased both this book and the Teach Yourself CBT at Amazon, as I wanted different ones for myself and my bf so we could have a bit more of a basis of comparison and analysis. I've read through most of mine (the Teach Yourself CBT) and his, and the Dummies book seems to me the best. The layout and the arrangement of themes is better, the text and information has more depth and it is more "user-friendly" if, like us, you have no experience in the subject. The ideas and suggestions are well grounded in the context, making it easier to understand why and how the things needing to be changed impact our lives, which facilitates the transition (implementing those behaviour changes). None of the books intends to be a miracle cure for every problem, but applying some of their premises have helped me achieving better communication with others and also a better hindsight of myself, especially in what concerns my starting points (my initial ideias, interpretations, emotions and so on that I rarely realised were even there but formed the way I shaped my dialogue or how my feelings and thoughts developed). The Dummies book is far more complete and easy to use, especially if you intend to stick to certain chapters only, and it is also more engaging. My mind kept going back and forth to previous things I had read and putting it together. The other one feels a bit more like a school book you try to memorise as you go along. The one thing I strongly disliked about the Dummies was the authors choice to refer to certain negative emotions and "guilt trips" as sins... Honestly, in a language as rich as the English one, there's no need to resort to words which will bring religious connotations to a context that has nothing to do with religious beliefs.

Don't be put off by the slightly condescending horrible black and yellow day glow book cover. I would never have bought this book because of the cover but was recommended to buy it by my doctor. Well, after trying many different therapies over the years this is the first time something spoke directly to me and made me feel so much better straight away. It made me feel 'normal', not alone and actually that I am in control of my anxiety and depression and that they are not in control of me. It works a bit like a car manual, in that if you have a problem that needs fixing, look up the problem and fix it. Us humans are not that complex and quite simple really, and many of us suffer from the same malfunctions, we just need a bit of tweaking now and then. No dramas, no mystery, no large financial outlay, no long delving sessions into your past. This book works, I would highly recommend it.

Brilliant

A very interesting read that follows a scientific approach to thoughts, emotions, sensations and behaviours. I do however have to take issue with chapter 4 where the author describes conducting experiments. The author goes on to talk about 'theories' when in fact the word they should be using is 'hypotheses'. This is really problematic as the word 'theory' has a very specific meaning in science and it is not the one the author uses. Furthermore the popular definition of 'theory', which is what the author uses, is not the correct definition for the scientific term 'theory'. I would like to see this corrected in the book as if the book is to claim to use the scientific method it must use scientific language with no possibility of ambiguity. Aside from this observation I would recommend the book to anyone interested in or practising CBT.

A good variety of solutions covering a wide range of problems, including detailed explanations of what may have caused them, what you may be doing to sustain them and what you can do about it. A slight disapointment for me is that it talks about overcoming your fear and anxiety by exposing yourself to these situations, which is good if you can regularly expose yourself to it. But if what causes your anxiety only happens every now and again but still causes great distress (and worry) leading up to and during the event, there is nothing of this nature featured in the book.

I received this book about 3 weeks ago, and I've been working my way through it with a highlighter pen to mark the sections relevant to me. Later, I'll go back and re-read what I've marked and focus on what I want to change. I've already noticed many passages had "light bulb" moments for me. I'm enjoying reading it, and feel very positive that it will enable me to improve my outlook and reactions towards the stressful circumstances that I've unfortunately been stuck with just now. It has shown me what is available through CBT. I hadn't been very impressed with the Psychologist I'd seen a couple of times, but now I plan to persevere, as the book has shown me a global picture of what CBT can achieve

自分が「適応障害」と言われたので読んでみた。 本書で扱われているのは anxiety, fear, addiction, body image disorder, そして depression である。おそらく、これらの病気の患者なら、私よりも多くの利益を本書から得られるだろう。 私の病気は直接扱われていないが、それでも かなり役立つヒントを得ることができた。 第2章には、病気の原因となる thinking errors が書かれている。ここで私は、自分の悲観的思考が catastrophising, fortune-telling, mind-reading, overgeneralising, makind demands, mental filtering, disqualifying the positive に当てはまることを知った。これらは unhelpful way と述べられている。 第3章・第4章では、認知行動療法の技法が紹介される。自動思考を記録して歪みを修正したり、仮説を実験して検証する方法などだ。私は今のところ これらを試していない。 第5章では、task concentration と mindfulness を解説する。私は、解決できない悩みが頭の中を無限ループする状態 (ruminating) に苦労していたが、これを回避できるようになった。 第14章は Overcoming Low Self-esteem and Accepting Yourself。自己を受容し、しかも向上を諦めない、という考え方が参考になった。 第16章では、経験によって染み付いた core beliefs を識別し、解消する方法を示す。 第22章は Ten Healthy Attitudes for Living。いらぬ精神的苦痛を減らすための 実用的な考え方 が紹介される。 第23章では、Ten Self-Esteem Boosters That Don't Work と題して、自信を得るための よくない方法 について警告する (第14章と関連)。例えば 他人をけなす、自分は特別だと思う、などは 避けるべきとしている。 第24章は Ten Ways to Lighten Up。第22章と似ているが、第24章には もっと積極的な行動が書いてある。自分の失敗を笑え、批判を役立てよ、趣味などに参加せよ、など。 私の「適応障害」は外的ストレスが原因の病気だ。本書のヒントに従えば、自分のストレス耐性を向上させることができそうだ。(直接的な解決方法は ストレス因子から離れることだが)

The CBT book is truley amazing.This thearapy is not just for anxieties and phobias and fears etc.It helps me in my wrong thinking in my day to day.Trust me You wont regret if you buy this book.The quality of our life definately is going to go up becoz of the philosophy of the book.And if you want non medical thearapy for your psycological issues like anxities ,fears and depression etc-then go fot this magic book.

If I could give this book 10 stars, I would. It is very readable and makes so much sense to me. I hope I don't sound dramatic, but this book changed my life. The authors are well versed on the subject and are able to explain CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) to us "dummies". I'm actually studying Clinical Psychology and I feel that this book has not only helped me, but it will help me to help my clients when I get to work in a few years. I'm very grateful that the authors shared their insight and experience with the world - what a gift. :)

Fantastic book. Highly recommend

NOt the best book and neither the worst. This is a very basic and average book. It is just OK.